Struggling to Settle
by Sir Dolan
Summary: After disaster strikes at their welcoming party, Grovyle and Dusknoir decide to have a heart-to-heart. Confessions and fluff await! Rated T for a Lapis' swearing.


**Summary: **After disaster strikes at their welcoming party, Grovyle and Dusknoir decide to have a heart-to-heart. Confessions and fluff await!

**Warning: **Slash - Grovyle/Dusknoir (PMD: Explorers of the Sky) (Humanised) (Fluffs) **Don't like don't read.**

**Disclaimer: **Grovyle and Dusknoir do not belong to me. OC's like Lapis do.

**Author's Note:** This is my first attempt at not writing in first person. I'm pleasantly surprised at how well it's gone. I've had trouble with writing it before, but somehow that problem seems to have disappeared. If there are any grammatical mistakes I do apologise. xD

* * *

Grovyle stood at the edge of Treasure Town waiting for Team Mirai. He sighed irritably before leaning against a tree with his arms crossed and an impatient expression easily seen on his face. Dusknoir stood a few metres away, watching the lithe youth with an amused face. They were to make their way to Spinda's Café as Team Mirai had set up a party. It was a celebration for Grovyle, Dusknoir and Celebi returning to the past.

After months of researching and time travelling Celebi had finally found a path between the world of the future and past. With permission from Dialga, she had immediately set to work to create a Passage of Time. A few months later they finally made it into the past. It took another month after that, but the trio were finally settled. Celebi had stated she would stay at Temporal Tower to travel back and forth between worlds instantly if need be. Grovyle and Dusknoir had made their home just outside of Treasure Town, declining the offer of staying at Sharpedo Bluff.

Grovyle glanced at the stairs that led down into the mouth of Sharpedo Bluff for what must have been the tenth time. He sighed again as his impatience gnawed at him.

"Has anyone ever told you you're extremely impatient?" Dusknoir asked.

"Yes, both you and Celebi have stated many times." The greenette replied with narrowed eyes.

The Ghost-type simply chuckled. "Are you excited?"

"I'm more nervous than excited if you're talking about the party. What about you?"

The blacknette seemed to shift almost nervously.

"I'm…wary of how they will take to me."

Grovyle winced and nodded. When the pair had returned to the past, Grovyle was greeted with warm arms by Team Mirai. They had not given Dusknoir the same treatment.

After explaining to them the events that had happened in the future they grew more relaxed. Chikorita had returned to treating Dusknoir like she did before, Lapis on the other hand was still wary from time to time.

When it came to being introduced back into Treasure town both Pokémon were treated with caution and distrust. They had every right to be. The last time they saw Grovyle he was an outlaw, stealing the Time Gears to apparently cause the destruction of their world. The last time they heard of Dusknoir, he was nothing more than a villain who had deceived them all.

It had been easy to get them to relax around Grovyle. They had already heard the story from Chikorita about how he helped them get to the Hidden Land. Dusknoir was an entirely different matter. Despite Celebi's best efforts and Grovyle's adamant defending, the Pokémon community still held distrust towards the Ghost-type.

"I'm sure it'll be fine." The lithe youth said. "They know what happened now. They can't be distrustful forever."

Apparently that had been the wrong thing to say as the ebony-haired male looked away with a pained expression.

Before Grovyle could say anything Team Mirai finally decided to exit their home. He immediately turned to them with a frown, crossing his arms and tapping his foot to add to the effect.

"How long does it take you to get ready?" he asked impatiently missing the fond look Dusknoir sent his way.

Lapis had not missed it. She simply raised an eyebrow before looking back at her old partner.

"We were sorting out our items." Chikorita smiled apologetically. "It was a pretty big mission we did today."

"We'd probably be having the party yesterday if we didn't need to prepare for it yesterday." The Charmander-once-human added. "Anyway, we should get going. We're going to be late otherwise."

"And whose fault is that I wonder…" Grovyle murmured under his breath but loud enough for Lapis to hear it.

The rednette turned and smacked him lightly on the arm causing him to grin.

"Let's go, children." Dusknoir announced suddenly before walking away.

Lapis and Chikorita laughed while Grovyle rolled his eyes.

It was late in the evening so Pokémon were thankfully absent from the streets. Most of them were probably hanging around in Spinda's Café, waiting for Team Mirai to finally stop being late.

As they entered the café Chikorita instantly called out and greeted everyone. Both Grovyle and Dusknoir stared in surprise at how the café looked. The lights were dimmed and multi-coloured for the whole party effect. Streamers were slung everywhere and a large banger was hanging at the back wall. The words "Welcome to the Past!" painted on it in big letters. Loud music was being played from Arceus-knows-where.

Grovyle instantly found himself grinning while Dusknoir glanced around. He hid his wince when he met the eyes of Pokémon who were staring at him. They immediately looked away with distrustful expressions.

Celebi had already made it to the party. She was sat at a table speaking to Sunflora and Chimecho, laughing without a care in the world. The entire guild had shown up as well, including some of the Pokémon who run the town stalls. Even Team Skull had decided to show up.

Grovyle stepped forward to join the party only to halt when the blacknette beside him hadn't. He turned around with a confused look.

The Ghost-type's russet red irises were downcast. He had seemed to shrink in on himself as he stood at the entrance, unsure of what to do.

Dusknoir looked positively out of character.

"Dusknoir?" Grovyle said gently. He almost growled in frustration when his voice was drowned out by the music.

He took a step towards the taller man causing him to look up with a startled expression.

"What?" the blacknette asked or rather mouthed as his voice was drowned out as well.

"Do you want to get a drink?" Grovyle had to shout above the music.

Dusknoir must have heard him because he nodded. The lithe youth offered an encouraging smile before leading them to the drinks bar. Spinda smiled warmly and asked for their orders. Once the drinks were made they quickly found a calm corner in the midst of the hyped up party. The two sat there for a while, sipping their drinks and grinning at Lapis and Chikorita.

Grovyle glanced over at the Ghost-type sat next to him and frowned. While he had a smile on his lips his eyes weren't happy at all. Was Dusknoir bored?

The greenette flinched when he looked over and raised an eyebrow.

"Do you want to dance?" he blurted out.

Dusknoir snorted. "With you?"

"You know what I mean."

The blacknette glanced back at the party. He had a look of contemplation before shaking his head.

"I don't think that would be wise."

"Come on, you look bored." Grovyle tried his best to deny that he sounded like he was begging. He did not beg to the Great Dusknoir.

"Grovyle, I don't even know _how_ to dance."

"I can teach you."

"Do _you_ even know how to dance?"

Grovyle scowled at that. "Of course I do!"

"Then you can show me." Dusknoir smirked when the greenette's eyes widened considerably.

Was Dusknoir…flirting with him?

Grovyle immediately dismissed that idea and stood up. He ignored his pounding heart and his shaky legs before announcing, "Fine."

He turned and left the table to find Lapis. She was currently sitting at the bar having a chat with Spinda. If he was going to do this, he was _not_ doing it alone.

As he approached the Fire-type she looked at him and grinned. "Hey."

Grovyle smiled back. "Hey."

"You two enjoying the party?" she asked before tilting her head in Dusknoir's direction.

"Yeah, thanks for doing this." The Grass-type paused before grinning slyly.

Lapis frowned. "What?"

"Lapis, would you like to dance?"

His old partner snorted and it oddly reminded him of Dusknoir.

"I can't dance for shit, Grovyle."

Nostalgia immediately hit him in the gut as he remembered the old Lapis. While this Lapis may have looked different and had no memory of their past, she still had the same quirks as before.

"You really haven't changed at all." The lithe youth said.

Her expression softened at the change of topic. "I wish I could remember, Grovyle. I really wish I could."

"I know." Grovyle suddenly felt sombre. The party was not the time for this. "Still, I want you to dance with me."

"Did we dance before?" Lapis asked sounding more curious than anything.

He smiled. "Sometimes,"

That was all that was needed for Lapis to stand up and nod. They made their way to the dance floor where they found Chikorita dancing with Koffing and Zubat. Apparently all had been forgiven and the three had become good friends. The trio greeted Grovyle and Lapis, and soon enough all five of them were dancing like idiots.

At first he felt awkward and stiff, unused to dancing in front of Pokémon he didn't really know. As the song went on- and he was sure it was Loudred who was singing- he began to find his rhythm. Soon enough the lithe youth was dancing and feeling more carefree than he had in years. He laughed openly and it surprised him how easily a party could do this to a person.

He glanced over at the table Dusknoir was still sitting at. The blacknette was sitting back in his chair with his arms crossed. There was a light smirk on his face and his eyes were completely focused on Grovyle. The greenette could feel his cheeks burning up and sent a rather half-hearted scowl in the Ghost-type's direction, causing him to chuckle.

Grovyle blinked when Dusknoir's attention was suddenly distracted from him. The blacknette frowned as a man sat in the seat the lithe youth had earlier. The man had dark purple hair and yellow eyes. Grovyle recognised him from somewhere. Skuntank, was that his name?

He watched carefully while he danced as the two spoke. He wasn't sure why, but he had begun feeling protective when Dusknoir was approached by someone he didn't know. It was almost like the way he felt when he was with Lapis in the future.

The conversation seemed relatively civil as far as Grovyle could tell. While Dusknoir looked impassive, he wasn't frowning or scowling. The greenette was about to let out a breath of relief before his stomach dropped. Dusknoir's eyes had suddenly widened and narrowed, darkening considerably before he glared at the male sat next to him. Grovyle completely forgot about dancing as he watched intently. The Ghost-type said something, causing Skuntank to laugh. The Poison, Dark-type waved a hand dismissively and said something in reply before standing up and walking away.

_What the hell was that about?_ He thought as he watched the purplenette walk away. His eyes went back to Dusknoir and froze at what he saw. The ebony-haired male was staring into his hands. Hurt was evident in both his eyes and his expression. Abruptly, he stood up and made for the exit.

Grovyle's breath hitched and he made a dash for the older male. He was pretty sure Lapis called after him, but her voice was drowned out by the music. He pushed through the crowd as fast as possible as Dusknoir exited the café. He cursed under his breath and forced his way through, running up the steps after him.

The lithe youth broke out into the crossroads. The sun had set a while ago, leaving the road to be illuminated by moonlight.

He breathed harshly as his eyes darted around in search for the Ghost-type. Panic began to squirm in his gut like a worm, ready to multiply at any second. Where would you go after possibly being insulted?

Suddenly, and randomly, a memory of something Chikorita had said invaded his mind.

"_Whenever I feel down or upset, I always go to the beach. The waves always manage to calm me down even if there aren't any Krabby blowing bubbles."_

Grovyle turned on his heel and ran down the path to the beach as fast as possible. He began to worry he was wrong in his decision and hoped he wasn't. Within a few seconds he was at the beach gasping for breath. The lithe youth flinched when he heard a loud 'thwack' against what sounding like rock. He looked up to see Dusknoir retrieving his hand gingerly from the boulder he obviously just punched.

"Dusknoir, there you are." Grovyle breathed with relief.

His relief was short lived when Dusknoir turned and looked at him. The way the Ghost-typed looked almost scared him. His eyes were wild with anger and hurt, and his lips were curled in sneer. After a moment the taller male seemed to recognise who he was and looked away. The pain was still evident in his eyes.

"What happened?" the greenette asked as he took a step closer.

"I really don't want to talk about it." Dusknoir almost growled.

"But something must have happened." Grovyle pressed carefully. "I saw that Skuntank talk to you, and then you're out here punching a boulder until your knuckles bleed."

"Grovyle, please…I'm not in the mood for this."

He wanted to know what had happened badly, but kept his mouth shut. Instead he walked over towards the waves and sat down.

"Watch the waves with me."

"What?"

"Chikorita told me watching them is calming." He elaborated.

"Do you honestly expect me to sit in the sand with you and watch waves?" Dusknoir asked incredulously.

Grovyle simply nodded. "Yes."

The Ghost-typed sighed heavily and walked over to the younger male. Apparently he had no energy to fight the Grass-type's antics. He sat down carefully and immediately held his gaze at the ocean and nothing else. Grovyle watched him for a moment before looking at the ocean.

They sat in a comfortable silence for what felt like hours. The lithe youth watched the waves calmly roll back and forth. The longer he watched the more he felt oddly relaxed. He almost squeaked in surprise when Dusknoir broke the silence.

"I've been thinking…" he said quietly and Grovyle's stomach dropped at his tone. "…I think it's best if I return to the future."

Grovyle blinked before staring in a dazed shock. "What?"

"It's not working for me here." The blacknette continued as though he hadn't said anything. "They don't trust me and it's obvious they never will. Didn't you say once that there's no point in trying if there's no trust?"

"I said that for _travelling_." Grovyle said somehow quickly. "I didn't say that for living within communities. Besides, it's only been a month."

Dusknoir remained quiet for a moment before looking directly at Grovyle. The greenette almost recoiled at the seriousness of his expression.

"Do you trust me?" he asked quietly.

The very question made Grovyle angry. "How can you ask me that? Of _course_ I trust you! What, do you think I lied about everything that I said back in the future?"

Dusknoir winced and both parties instantly felt guilty.

"I…I'm sorry for snapping." He apologised. "It's just…what made you doubt _my_ trust?"

The Ghost-type froze at the emphasis on 'my'. Grovyle continued to speak having not noticed it.

"Was it something Skuntank said?" he asked gently.

"I shouldn't have listened to him." Dusknoir blurted before looking down. "How could I have been such a fool?"

"What do you mean?"

"I doubted your trust because that slimy skunk put those doubts into my head. He messed around with my mind by bringing up the fact that the town barely trusts me as it is. He then asked me "Do you really believe he trusts you after everything you did?" and I stupidly…immaturely let him bait me."

The Ghost-type took a deep breath leaving a speechless Grovyle, well, speechless.

"I'm sorry." He said quietly before looking at the green-haired male.

Grovyle blinked. "I…don't really know what to say."

Dusknoir gave a broken chuckle. "That's a first."

"I do know one thing, though." The older male looked at him expectantly. "You gained my trust a long time ago, Dusknoir. That trust hasn't been lost or doubted once. I don't regret how we grew close in the future. Yeah, you may have acted like an idiot, but for some reason I'm glad what happened did happen. You mean as much to me as Lapis and Celebi does. I've grown to respect you and I don't regret that either. Hell, I think about you more than I probably should-"

The lithe youth abruptly stopped and froze. He could feel his entire face burn brightly and his heart pound against his ribcage. What had made him blurt that out without thinking? It was like he had verbal diarrhoea.

Dusknoir blinked in surprise before smirking lightly. "Think about me more than you should?"

Grovyle tried to throw a scowl at him but found he couldn't. What should he do? He's already admitted to thinking about him more than usual.

_Hell, may as well tell him everything else._

"I…yeah…I have. I have been thinking about you more lately." He admitted awkwardly. "I don't know why, and I'm blaming you entirely for it. I feel more protective over you. So much that I _really_ want to go and punch that Skuntank hard in the face and tie him up. My heart does somersaults whenever we make eye contact for too long. And tonight when we were in the party and you were watching me, it made my body go into awkward overdrive. Not just that, I mistook you for _flirting_ with me as well, which makes no sense because we're both _guys_."

He took a deep breath signalling that he was over. Dusknoir stared at him in shock and disbelief. He had expected the Grass-type to try and make some copout excuse that he didn't mean it in the way he was thinking. He hadn't expected him to spill his guts up.

"And you blame me for all of this?" he asked carefully.

"Yes."

"That would mean you would want me to take responsibility, no?"

Grovyle glanced over at him and slowly nodded. "Yes." In all truth the lithe youth had no idea what he'd just agreed to.

Dusknoir simply hummed. "Okay."

Grovyle's eyes widened when the Ghost-type leant over to him. His heart was pounding and his face flushed brightly when he felt the other's breath on his cheek. Dusknoir moved slowly, giving Grovyle the chance to push him away as he gently cupped the younger male's cheek. The blacknette tilted his head as he gently claimed the Grass-type's lips.

Their first kiss was brief but sweet. Dusknoir had moved his mouth against Grovyle's ever-so-slightly before pulling back, giving him the room to think.

"Do you still want me to take responsibility?" he asked quietly.

_Yes._ His brain provided.

Grovyle tried to get a hold of his feelings. He was feeling happy but confused that the kiss even happened. Then, as he looked into those red irises he saw concern with the question asked and it made his chest swell with a foreign feeling he couldn't name. The smell of pine and a dusk evening filled his senses, making everything seem _right_. As cliché as it all sounded, it was perfect.

He wanted this.

Grovyle didn't feel the need to speak. Instead he replied by returning the kiss, claiming Dusknoir's lips just as gently in return.

Their second kiss was slow and long. Grovyle ended up on Dusknoir's lap as their worries briefly fell away into their lips.

The lithe youth pulled away first. His were cheeks flushed but he couldn't stop from grinning like an idiot. Dusknoir smiled back, running his fingers through Grovyle's grassy locks. He had an arm around Grovyle's back while the younger male had his arms around the Ghost-types neck. The two sat like that for a while, listening to the sound of the waves.

Grovyle rested his head against Dusknoir's chest. He closed his eyes and listened to the heartbeats, letting them lull him to sleep. He lazily thought of how they could just sit here forever in the moonlight, listening to the waves when fear struck through him. He snapped open his eyes when he remembered Dusknoir's earlier statement.

He looked up at the Ghost-type desperately, ignoring the puzzled expression he got in return.

"Please don't go…" he didn't care how weak he sounded. He needed to make sure Dusknoir wouldn't go, no matter how selfish he seemed.

The older male flinched. "Grovyle…"

"Please…" he whispered into his chest. "I know it's selfish of me to say this. I need you here, Dusknoir. I don't want to lose what we've just created, and I don't want to leave this place either. I know deep down I'll follow you, but that won't mean it wouldn't hurt…"

They were silent for a moment. Grovyle's heart hammered in fear and apprehension. He flinched when the fingers resting on his head start moving again, instantly relaxing him. He heard Dusknoir release a sigh before speaking.

"You sure know how to pull on someone's heartstrings, don't you?"

He looked up to find Dusknoir smiling back down at him.

"What?"

"I'll continue to struggle." The blacknette said. "I'll try to settle in this world. It won't be easy, but I'll try. Besides, it'll make you happy."

Grovyle grinned widely. "Do you mean it?"

"I mean it Time Gear Thief." He laughed at his nickname.

"Thank you my, my Lord."

* * *

Hello! Thank you for reading!

I love this pairing so much. I swear, it's like my guilty pleasure. I feel confident and comfortable writing about them.

I will attempt to write other pairings at some point in the future, like Ereri, but I'm not very confident at writing about them. I love them to bits, but my skill with them needs improvement. (Oo-er)

Once again, thank you for reading. Feel free to leave a review and I'll be happy to read it. c:

Dolan


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